Goat yoga began with Lainey Morse in 2016, on her farm in Oregon's Willamette Valley. To Travel Oregon she is “the Founder of Goat Yoga”; a Thrifty Homesteader interview introduces her as “founder of the original Goat Yoga in Oregon's Willamette Valley.” The business she started that year still operates as Original Goat Yoga.
Where did goat yoga start?
Goat yoga started with a birthday party in the summer of 2016, and the first classes ran on Lainey Morse's farm, the property now called No Regrets Flower Farm & Animal Sanctuary. Morse's own site puts it plainly:
What started as a birthday party on a summer day in Oregon quickly grew into a global sensation with classes springing up worldwide.
The party is only half the origin. The other half is Goat Happy Hour, Morse's name for unstructured time with the goats: “a simple idea for ‘Goat Happy Hour’ transformed into a viral global phenomenon” (Thrifty Homesteader). Put the two together, a party and an hour with the goats, and you have the first goat yoga class. Goat Happy Hour is still on the farm's schedule today.
Morse is originally from Michigan and moved to Oregon in 2006. Her bio lists more than twenty years in business development and marketing and calls her an award-winning photographer. She photographed the first class herself.
The Modern Farmer photos
Morse's husband suggested she send her photos of that first class to Modern Farmer, and the coverage ran from there all the way to CNN. She told Thrifty Homesteader how it went:
So I did, and they responded almost immediately, and they were like, This is adorable. And so that was the first story, an interview, and then the Oregonian picked it up. And then from there, my phone just started ringing off the hook. I had like, 30-40 emails a day. The New York Times came out to our farm. We were in People Magazine, The Wall Street Journal.
The original operation today
Original Goat Yoga is now a brand rather than a single class. The company's site advertises “Original Goat Yoga™ & Goat Happy Hour® Locations all over the USA.”
No Regrets Flower Farm & Animal Sanctuary sits on Bellfountain Road in Bellfountain, Oregon, looking out over the southern Willamette Valley, about twenty minutes from Corvallis and Eugene. Travel Oregon calls it “Home of the Original Goat Yoga World Headquarters.” Morse runs it with her husband, Sean Scorvo. The farm's site describes it as “a unique haven just outside Eugene and Corvallis” with a stated focus on sustainability and mental health. In our directory it appears under its Monroe, Oregon mailing address as Original Goat Yoga HQ Corporate Office.
OregonLive has reported that Morse and Scorvo added flower farming to the business in 2023, using a German permaculture style called hugelkultur. Feeding the bouquets to the farm's ten resident animals has since become a paid experience, one you can join virtually. “These goats spread so much love,” Morse told the paper. “And now they get to devour flower bouquets.”
Goat yoga in 2026
A decade on from 2016, the practice reaches well past Oregon. Our directory tracks 195 active listings across 48 states. Farms lead the venue types at 53, just ahead of yoga studios at 47.
Listings using the Original Goat Yoga name appear in Oregon, California, Michigan, Kentucky, Illinois, New York and Florida, among them Original Goat Yoga in Lansing, Michigan, based in nearby Williamston.
Goat yoga long ago outgrew the brand. Most classes are run by independent farms and studios, and the draw is the same either way. We've rounded up the benefits people report most.
For the mechanics of a class, read our guide to what goat yoga actually involves. To book one near you, start from our goat yoga near me page.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Lainey Morse start goat yoga?
By her own account, almost by accident. The first class grew out of a 2016 birthday party and Goat Happy Hour, which was, and still is, simply time spent hanging out with the goats.
When was goat yoga invented?
In 2016. Both the Thrifty Homesteader interview with Morse and OregonLive's reporting place the start of goat yoga in that year.
Is every goat yoga class part of Original Goat Yoga?
No. Original Goat Yoga is Morse's company, with affiliated locations around the country, but most classes are independent and don't use the name. If it matters to you, check the venue's website before booking.